Seven Deadly Sins: How Many Have You Committed?

We all make mistakes and that’s OK. In marketing, I believe it is as important to analyze which campaigns work and identify those that fail. I recently reviewed last quarter’s campaigns with a client and started thinking about the seven deadly sins, and how they relate to the mistakes we all make as marketers.

Lust

We all want what we can’t or don’t have. You probably spend more time on the competition’s website or watch their latest video more than focusing on you’re your own? Replicating what the competition did might not work for you. Perhaps their goal or metrics were different. So instead of drooling over what you don’t have, get moving on what you need to create and/or improve your next campaign.

Gluttony

Just because company ABC got the best banner placement or had the largest booth at the trades how doesn’t necessarily mean they had a better result. Spending more doesn’t always equate to results and success. There are plenty of successful marketing campaigns implemented on shoestring budgets.

Greed

OK, so your brand is top dog. You have market share and brand recognition. Don’t get greedy! You still have to be nimble and market savvy. Remember David & Goliath? The bigger they are, the harder they fall.

Sloth

“It worked well last time…” Just because a campaign worked once doesn’t mean you can set it to auto-pilot. Markets change, industries shift. You need to stay relevant and timely. Don’t get complacent and become a marketing sloth.

Envy

We are all jealous of everyone else’s marketing budget or website. Don’t let jealously cloud your judgment and vision. Who knows if that flashy campaign may work for your audience. Success is defined in many different ways and what may have worked for one group may not be successful for you.

Wrath

Don’t self-destruct that marketing campaign because you are impatient. Give yourself a time frame from which to measure success before making a rash decision to pull the plug.

Pride

So you have trophies in your case. Don’t get lazy (see Sloth above) and forget about marketing campaigns that didn’t work. Yep, even you have campaigns that failed. Sometimes the best insight and analytics come from failures. Make sure you analyze every campaign and learn from them.